2018年双语新闻 59岁的芭比娃娃变了吗？

Iconic toy stands for long journey of modern females

59岁的芭比娃娃变了吗？

Even though she hasn't aged¹ a day since she was "born", one of the most famous figures in US culture recently turned 59. Barbie, the doll whose face is known all around the world, was created in 1959.

尽管自诞生之日起，她的容颜从未老去，但这位最著名的美国文化名人最近度过了59岁生日。芭比娃娃诞生于1959年，如今她的面孔无人不晓。

In the past half a century, a lot of toys have come and gone, but Barbie – short for Barbara – has always had a home on toy stores' shelves. This is probably due to the fact that "she" is not just a toy, but a "barometer²" of people's changing attitudes toward women, as The New York Times put it.

在过去的半个世纪，不少玩具都是昙花一现，但芭比娃娃——全名是芭芭拉——在玩具店的货架上总有一席之地。这或许是因为“她”不仅仅是玩具，而是如《纽约时报》所言，她是人们对女性态度变化的“晴雨表”。

When Barbie was first introduced by Ruth Handler (1916 – 2002), co-founder of US toy company Mattel, she had good intentions. "Unlike playing with a baby doll, in which a little girl is pretty much limited to assuming the role of Mommy, Barbie has always represented the fact that a woman has choices," she said, according to her autobiography³, Dream Doll: The Ruth Handler Story.

当美国美泰玩具公司共同创始人露丝·汉德勒首次推出芭比娃娃时，她赋予了芭比美好的意愿。“小女孩玩洋娃娃时，往往局限于扮演妈妈的角色，而芭比不同，她代表女性能有所选择，”她在其自传《梦想中的娃娃：露丝·汉德勒的故事》中这样写道。

But these good intentions still didn't prevent the earliest versions of Barbie being available only in a sexy swimsuit or a housewife's outfit⁴, neither of which gave the image of a girl with many "choices".

尽管这些意愿很美好，但最早期的芭比娃娃依然只能穿着性感的泳装或者家庭主妇的衣服，无法展现女孩的多种“选择”。

During the following years, fortunately, the company made some positive progress, including introducing the first black and Hispanic Barbies and making Barbie separate from her long-time "boyfriend" Ken⁵, as they needed to "spend some quality time – apart", as Mattel noted⁶.

幸运的是，在接下来的几年里，该公司做出了一些积极改进，如制作了首款非裔和西班牙裔芭比娃娃，以及将芭比与交往多年的“男友”肯分开，正如美泰公司指出的那样，两人需要“分开，独自享受美好时光”。

And on March 8, this year's Women's Day, the company launched a new line of "Inspiring Women", with dolls of famous female figures from throughout history, including legendary⁷ US pilot Amelia Earhart and UK boxer⁸ Nicola Adams.

而在今年3月8日妇女节期间，该公司推出了“励志女性”新系列，娃娃们都是历史上知名的女性人物，如美国传奇飞行员阿梅莉亚·埃尔哈特和英国拳击手尼古拉·亚当斯。

But in spite of more "good intentions", the line has its problems. The Nicola Adams doll, for example, unlike the athlete herself, has no muscle at all. Instead, it's designed to have a slim body, just like other Barbies. And this, according to Independent reporter Biba Kang, exactly reflects the latest attitude that the world has toward women.

尽管“美好的意愿”变得更多了，但该系列娃娃仍存在问题。打个比方，该系列中的尼古拉·亚当斯娃娃和运动员本人不同，看不出一点儿肌肉。这款娃娃被设计成和其他芭比娃娃一样，身材苗条。《独立报》记者碧玛·康认为，这一点正好反映了世界对于女性的最新态度。

"We're allowed to be fit, but we're not supposed to be too muscular. We're allowed to be clever, but smart women are meant to look like models with glasses on. We're allowed to be creative and artistic⁹, but quickly become 'crazy' if we start to look too individualistic or unkempt," she wrote.

“我们可以变得健美，但我们不应该肌肉发达。我们可以很聪明，但聪慧的女性得看起来像戴了眼镜的模特。我们可以拥有创作和艺术的才华，但如果我们看起来太过自我或者邋遢，很快就变成了‘疯狂’。”她写道。

Yes, Barbie isn't perfect. But the mere¹⁰ fact that she's spent her life trying to break the norm one bit at a time is perhaps the one thing that most real females can relate to.

是的，芭比并不完美。但她一生都在试着一点点打破固有准则，而这一点或许是现实生活中大多数女性能够借鉴的地方。

1 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

2 barometer   

n.气压表，睛雨表，反应指标

参考例句：

• The barometer marked a continuing fall in atmospheric pressure.气压表表明气压在继续下降。
• The arrow on the barometer was pointing to"stormy".气压计上的箭头指向“有暴风雨”。

3 autobiography   

n.自传

参考例句：

• He published his autobiography last autumn.他去年秋天出版了自己的自传。
• His life story is recounted in two fascinating volumes of autobiography.这两卷引人入胜的自传小说详述了他的生平。

4 outfit   

n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装

参考例句：

• Jenney bought a new outfit for her daughter's wedding.珍妮为参加女儿的婚礼买了一套新装。
• His father bought a ski outfit for him on his birthday.他父亲在他生日那天给他买了一套滑雪用具。

5 ken   

n.视野，知识领域

参考例句：

• Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
• Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.

6 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

7 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。

8 boxer   

n.制箱者，拳击手

参考例句：

• The boxer gave his opponent a punch on the nose.这个拳击手朝他对手的鼻子上猛击一拳。
• He moved lightly on his toes like a boxer.他像拳击手一样踮着脚轻盈移动。

9 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

10 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。